The protagonist—just like the author himself—is very active in competitive shooting sports, so unusually detailed and intricate facts, figures, and explanations of firearms-related topics ornament the narrative and drive the plot.
Its thesis, as discussed in the “Author's Note – A Warning and Disclaimer” in the beginning of the book, is that enough bullying, by what is widely perceived as a hostile occupation government, will inevitably end in revolt if the occupied area is large enough and has a culture that is significantly different from the occupying state, and that this revolt will be undefeatable if the rebels use very low-tech "leaderless resistance."
A skilled pilot and U.S. Navy officer, he trained 437 naval aviators during World War II, retiring as a Lieutenant Commander.
Ray Johnson is a New York City attorney, originally from Aspen, Colorado, who moves to Africa in 1963 and becomes a big-game safari guide.
His return to the U.S. in 1994 serves to illustrate how much U.S. gun owners' freedoms have eroded, due to legislation and executive orders enacted during his absence.
A major shift in the novel's plot occurs when Henry finds corrupt ATF agents framing Allen, himself, and another firearms dealer.
Ten years after writing the novel, Ross met Tammy Chapman, whose early life shares a resemblance to that of the fictional Caswell.
Encouraged by his father, he gathers an impressive firearms collection and gains extensive experience in piloting small aircraft.
While at a gun show in Indianapolis, Indiana with friend Allen Kane, Bowman publicly embarrasses an agent of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF), Wilson Blair.
Several years later, Blair and subordinate agents of the ATF plan to frame Henry and his friends as terrorists, smugglers, and counterfeiters.
Unbeknownst to Blair, Bowman delays his departure at the last minute due to a work commitment, and is on a friend's property when the agents arrive.
Bowman assumes the agents are burglars and engages in a gun battle with them, killing or capturing all and in the process discovering the truth about the raid.
Eventually, as the ATF and FBI are unable to effectively track down those responsible for the killings, the President of the United States is forced to give an address to the nation relating his intent to repeal the unconstitutional laws, including the National Firearms Act of 1934 and Gun Control Act of 1968.
He viewed the book favorably, and noted that if it had come out a few years earlier, he would have given serious consideration to using sniper attacks in a war of attrition against the government instead of bombing a federal building:[7] If people say The Turner Diaries was my Bible, Unintended Consequences would be my New Testament.